MM. Let's all meet up in the year 2000, won't it be strange when we're all fully grown?

In 2000 not all the computers in the world blew up, the PS2 was released, PJ2 said sorry, Big Oily Vlad came to power, India's population reached one beeelion, the Tate Modern opened and the Nintendo GameCube arrived.

Buh-bye Hedy Lamarr, Charles M. Schulz, Ian Dury, Walter Matthau, Kirsty MacColl and Sirs Stanley Matthews, John Gielgud, Alec Guinness and Robin Day.

I'd pretty much just about landed what later turned into a career in web development, and I moved to London. Musically it wasn't going that well, though.

Honourable mentions

Coldplay - Parachutes

Another unpopular selection, I suspect. Don't care. Still love this album. Again, try to forget what a pile of assclownery they've turned into - in 2000 this album filled the hole left in my musical consumption left by Radiohead's change of direction. I still turn frequently to this record when I want a break from the rock. Top track: "Spies"

Danger Danger - The Return Of The Great Gildersleeves

I had no idea that Danger Danger had been slogging away all through the Dark Times until much later, but it turned out they had (although without Ted Poley), and this is such a good fun album. Top track: "Dead Drunk & Wasted"

Slash's Snakepit - Ain't Life Grand

Slash! He of the hat! There were only two Snakepit albums, and this is by far the superior. Utterly riffdactic, as you would imagine. Top track: "Mean Bone"

Transmission OK - The Sky, The Stars And The Great Beyond

Way back in the day, like 1990 or so, there were lots of up and coming young shredders, and they mostly got in bands, did a couple of albums, and disappeared when that kind of music fell out of favour a few years later. C'est la vie. One of them, Mr. Blues Saraceno, suddenly reappeared in 2000 with a pop/rock band and album, and it's just great. Top track: "Fiberglass"

Wheatus - Wheatus

I honestly don't know how or where I heard Wheatus but when I did, I liked them. I bought the CD, and even took the (then) girlfriend to one of their gigs. We were about 26 or so, but we were the oldest people in the crowd. We pogoed for a couple of tracks, then went and leant against the bar. Cracking fun album though. :) Top track: "Love Is A Mutt From Hell"

And the winner is…

Paul Gilbert - Alligator Farm

Pablo Gilberto! Yayyyy!

When PG split from Mr. Big to go solo, I hoovered up his albums with religious fervour, but for me it wasn't until this - his third - that he really clicked into gear. A splendid assemblage of tunes with Paul's omnipresent sense of fun running throughout, and of course a lot of insane guitar licks. But you really don't need to even be a rock-head to dig this album. His music isn't impenetrably widdly, it's if anything more pop-friendly than Mr. Big's stuff, and somehow manages to fold his insane guitar playing into a collection of tunes you'd happily play to your mum.

There's even a Spice Girls cover.

Seriously. There is.

No, really.

Top tracks: "Alligator Farm", "Individually Twisted", "Attitude Boy Will Overcome"

Turkey of the Year

Radiohead - Kid A

I didn't like the change in Radiohead's sound from The Bends to OK Computer, so when they did this, I really couldn't hang. I'm not saying it's bad - how could a billion Chinese people be wrong?* - it's just not for me.

* Don't like rice, Michael?